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DOUG NEELY TO BE INDUCTED INTO BALTIMORE BLAST HALL OF FAME ON DECEMBER 11

The Baltimore Blast announced today that former player Doug Neely will be inducted into the Baltimore Blast Hall of Fame on Saturday, December 11th. Original Blast Head Coach Kenny Cooper, former players Stan Stamenkovic, Mike Stankovic, Tim Wittman, Bruce Savage, Dave MacWilliams, Joey Fink, Heinz Wirtz, Keith Van Eron, Dominic Mobilio, Billy Ronson, Richard Chinapoo, Cris Vaccaro and Pat Ercoli are already in the Hall of Fame, along with original MISL Commissioner Earl Foreman. Neely will be honored in a ceremony during halftime of the Blast game against the Missouri Comets on December 11th.

“Doug was one of my favorite players," said Blast Owner Ed Hale. "He was a fierce competitor and very effective on the field and, in typical Blast tradition, he represented us very well off the field."

A defender, Neely played for the original Blast for the 1991-92 season, played for the Spirit from 1992-94 and for the 1996-97 season and returned to Baltimore from 1998-2002. He still ranks in the top 20 on the current Blast’s all-time regular season scoring list (183 points), was a Third-Team All-League selection in 1993 and represented Baltimore in the 1993, 1994 and 1997 All-Star Games.

“I am overwhelmed by this great honor of being inducted to the Baltimore Blast Hall of Fame, said Neely. “There are so many people I would love to thank, including Ed Hale, Kevin Healey, the prior inductees, my teammates and all of the Baltimore Blast fans."

In addition to Doug, several other former players will be at the Blast vs. Comets game on the 11th, including Heinz Wirtz, Joey Fink, Sepp Gantenhammer, Cris Vaccaro, Dave MacWilliams, Richard Chinapoo, Joe Koziol, JJ Kremer, Tarik Walker, Lance Johnson, Jason Dieter and more!

The Blast, 2-0 on the season, is off until the 11th and will finish 2010 at 1st Mariner Arena with a home game against the Omaha Vipers on December 18th. Single-game tickets cost $30, $22, $19 and $16 and are on sale at the 1st Mariner Arena Box Office, by calling TicketMaster at 410-547-SEAT or online at www.ticketmaster.com. For additional information on all Blast tickets, call the Blast office at 410-73-BLAST.